The present invention relates to a drive for moving mechanical elements, particularly a locking bolt pertaining to a locking mechanism on a cover for an opening in the body of a motor vehicle. The drive includes a reversible drive motor coupled to a reduction gearing which is operatively connected via an intermediary transmission member with the locking bolt.
A driving device of this kind is known from the German publication DE-OS 30 31 066 and includes a reduction gearing assembled of meshing gears which can be driven even from power output end of the gearing. As a consequence, it is possible that the locking element can be manually shifted out of its locking position and the cover of an opening in the vehicle body can be opened. To prevent such an unauthorized opening, there is provided an intermediary member in the form a toothed rack cooperating with a locking lever which is spring-biased into an unlocking position; the locking lever is pressed into a recess in the frame of the vehicle by a head of an actuation slider movable by a push rod. Since in order to move the actuation slider the push rod must be provided with a further springloaded nose which must be crossed by the slider head when the slider is being transferred from its locking position into its unlocking position, undesirable switching noises result. Furthermore, an additional slider stroke is needed to safeguard the locking element in its locking position, because the additional stroke first causes the actuation slider or its slider head to press the locking lever into the recess.